Colleges in Hawaii
This page aggregates every Title IV–eligible college and university with a primary campus in Hawaii, drawing from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard, IPEDS institutional reports, and de-identified IRS earnings linkage for federal-aid recipients. Coverage includes public flagships, regional comprehensives, community and technical colleges, private nonprofit institutions, and for-profit schools.
The state-aggregate statistics below include all reporting institutions in Hawaii as a single denominator — community colleges, public universities, private nonprofits, and for-profit institutions are pooled. State averages are therefore useful for high-level framing (in-state tuition is X, average admission rate is Y, average earnings are Z) but should not be read as representative of any specific sector or institution. Drill into individual school profiles for the full picture: admissions, costs (sticker and net), federal-aid usage, completion, retention, demographics, and earnings outcomes 6 and 10 years after enrollment.
The most-recent Scorecard release is from September 2024. Tuition figures reflect institutional reports for the 2022–23 academic year and may differ from current-year prices. Earnings data has an inherent lag — the 10-year earnings horizon reflects students who enrolled approximately a decade prior to the data publication, as the IRS-matching process requires time to accumulate post-enrollment income.
Largest Colleges in Hawaii by Enrollment
Highest Earnings 10-Year Median — Hawaii
What the IPEDS Data Shows for Colleges in Hawaii
Hawaii has 20 Title IV-participating postsecondary institutions in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), the federal directory that captures every college eligible to award federal student aid. The ownership mix is 10 public institutions, 0 private nonprofits, and 0 private for-profit schools — a structural split that drives most of the tuition variation visible in the table below. Public institutions typically report substantially lower in-state tuition because state appropriations subsidize the published price, while private nonprofits often show higher sticker prices that are partially offset by institutional aid.
Cost and selectivity signals vary widely even within a single state. The average in-state tuition across Hawaii institutions is $11,136, and the average admission rate (weighted by institutions that report one) sits at 77.8%. Admission rates from IPEDS exclude open-enrollment institutions, which is why community colleges and many for-profits show as unreported rather than at 100 percent. Looking at the table, the acceptance-rate column is blank for schools that don’t screen applicants, a meaningful distinction when evaluating selectivity alongside earnings.
Post-graduation outcomes tie cost to return. Graduates of Hawaii colleges earn a mean of $43,778 ten years after enrollment, based on U.S. Treasury tax records linked to federal aid applicants through the College Scorecard data file. Because earnings depend heavily on field of study and local labor markets, state-level averages should be read alongside each school’s program mix. The table sorts every institution with reported IPEDS enrollment so prospective students can compare acceptance rates, enrollment scale, and median earnings side by side rather than relying on third-party rankings.
All Schools in Hawaii
| School Name | City | Type | Enrollment | Acceptance Rate | 10yr Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Hawaii at Manoa | Honolulu | Public | 15,029 | 86.6% | $57,624 |
| Kapiolani Community College | Honolulu | Public | 3,910 | — | $44,599 |
| Leeward Community College | Pearl City | Public | 3,438 | — | $39,899 |
| Brigham Young University-Hawaii | Laie | Private Nonprofit | 2,889 | 47.0% | $52,064 |
| University of Hawaii-West Oahu | Kapolei | Public | 2,519 | 95.3% | $52,075 |
| Hawaii Pacific University | Honolulu | Private Nonprofit | 2,392 | 85.9% | $59,593 |
| University of Hawaii at Hilo | Hilo | Public | 2,160 | 60.6% | $47,856 |
| Honolulu Community College | Honolulu | Public | 1,897 | — | $45,105 |
| University of Hawaii Maui College | Kahului | Public | 1,700 | — | $34,453 |
| Chaminade University of Honolulu | Honolulu | Private Nonprofit | 1,672 | 91.4% | $52,343 |
| Hawaii Community College | Hilo | Public | 1,546 | — | $34,891 |
| Windward Community College | Kaneohe | Public | 1,159 | — | $38,439 |
| Kauai Community College | Lihue | Public | 716 | — | $36,868 |
| Hawaii Medical College | Honolulu | Private For-Profit | 194 | — | $38,880 |
| Pacific Rim Christian University | Honolulu | Private Nonprofit | 129 | — | $40,523 |
| Hawaii Institute of Hair Design | Honolulu | Private For-Profit | 85 | — | $25,235 |
| Makana Esthetics Wellness Academy | Honolulu | Private For-Profit | 50 | — | — |
| Hawaii Tokai International College | Kapolei | Private Nonprofit | 24 | 77.8% | — |
| Mauna Loa Helicopters | Kailua Kona | Private For-Profit | 12 | — | — |
| Institute of Clinical Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine | Honolulu | Private For-Profit | — | — | — |
Featured Colleges in Hawaii
Quick picks from this state — compare two schools side by side
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About This Data
School data comes from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS institutional characteristics files. Enrollment, admissions, and earnings figures are the most recently available. Earnings represent median income 10 years after enrollment for students who received federal financial aid, drawn from U.S. Treasury tax records linked to federal student aid applicants.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.